March 25, 2026

By Mary Beth Gahan

The purple redbuds and sprouting of dandelions have declared the beginning of spring, which also heralds the return of the familiar tick-tick-tick of sprinkler systems kicking on at each house down the street.

Those irrigation system schedules will likely need an adjustment compared to last year, though.

Just before the grass went dormant in the winter, the Town of Flower Mound implemented a long-term water conservation plan. Now, residents are only allowed to water their grass two days a week.

Denton County is classified as D0 on the U.S. Drought Monitor, meaning it is abnormally dry, but not in a drought. D4, or exceptional drought, is the highest an area can be labeled.

Still, the town is trying to reduce water usage as the strain on the natural resource becomes a looming problem for the Metroplex and a dire issue for some places in Texas, like Corpus Christi.

In 2025, the town distributed 5.3 billion gallons of water and treated 1.6 billion gallons of wastewater. A majority of the remaining 3.7 billion gallons of water were used for irrigation and to fill up pools, according to Brian Waltenburg, director of public works.

The ordinance that outlines the watering schedule was approved by the town council on October 20. It restricts residents and businesses from using sprinklers between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., an attempt to avoid the hottest parts of the day when water is quickly evaporated before it’s absorbed by the soil.

For homes with even numbered addresses, watering days are Tuesday and Friday. Odd-numbered houses can use sprinklers on Wednesday and Saturday. All multi-family residential, commercial, and HOA X-lots are allowed to water the grass on Monday and Thursday.

Watering with a hand-held hose, bucket, or drip irrigation is allowed at any time.

Owners of properties that are in violation of the ordinance will receive a notice that lays out the new restrictions and there may be other actions enforcement actions taken for repeat offenders, said Melissa Demmitt, communications director for the town.

The town gets most of its water from the Upper Trinity Regional Water District, which has a free irrigation check-up program.

The average irrigation system spits out 15 to 16 gallons of water each minute at each station, according to the town.